Giannis Antetokounmpo has always been close to his family, notably his mother, Veronica, and his late father, Charles.

Charles and Veronica (Vera) moved to Athens, Greece, in 1991 from Nigeria. The eldest of their five children, Francis, was born in Lagos, Nigeria, and lived with his grandparents when his parents went to Greece. They reared their four younger kids in Athens: Thanasis, Giannis, Kostas, and Alex. After years without citizenship, Giannis was given Greek citizenship in May 2013, soon before his NBA selection. After getting visas, his parents and younger brothers, 14 and 11, accompanied his elder brother Thanasis to the U.S. to play in the NBA D-League in 2014.

The 2022 Disney+ film Rise told the story of the skilled and close-knit Antetokounmpos.

Veronica told Yahoo! Sports, “From the beginning of our time, I’ve trusted my kids of whatever they’re doing, hoping that one day this will work out well. At the same time, watching them playing, coming to NBA, moving all around the world, championship and everything, I was saying, ‘This is going to take us to a greater place in the future, “So here we are today. We’re great.”

Charles and Francis played professional soccer, the other four boys were selected into the NBA, and Veronica was a high jumper. NBA power forward Giannis, nicknamed as the “Greek Freak,” is highly regarded.

“The journey has been unbelievable,” he told Red Bulletin. “My parents believed in my dream more than I did.”

Charles died of a heart аttаck aged 54 in September 2017, a couple years before Giannis won NBA MVP Awards in 2019 and 2020 and three of his kids won NBA titles. In 2021, Giannis and Thanasis won with the Milwaukee Bucks, and Kostas with the Lakers in 2020.

It’s hard. Two weeks after his father’s deаth, Giannis told NBA.com, “Losing someone you love is difficult Losing someone from Day 1 This is especially true for our immediate family.”

Veronica keeps in touch with her boys and attends NBA games. Giannis told TIME in 2017, “She’s been a colleague right next to me.”

Charles and Veronica Antetokounmpo—who? Learn about Giannis Antetokounmpo’s parents and connection with the NBA star.

They share five sons

Francis, Thanasis, Kostas, and Alex are Charles and Veronica’s other sons.The NBA picked all Antetokounmpo boys except Francis. However, Francis played professional soccer in Greece. Three also won NBA titles: Kostas with the L.A. Lakers in 2020 and Thanasis and Giannis with the Bucks in 2021. Rise, a 2022 Disney+ movie, was inspired by the brothers’ athletic accomplishments, extraordinary rise to fаme, and tight connection.“The movie is about more than me. My parents sacrificed early in life to get us where we are now “Giannis told the New York Post in 2022.Charles and Veronica are grandparents. Giannis and Mariah Riddlesprigger have two kids, Liam Charles and Maverick Shai, with a third on the way. Veronica told Milwaukee’s WISN 12 News that her 2020 first grandchild was a “special gift.”

They immigrated to Greece, where Giannis was born, in 1991

Charles and Veronica came from Lagos, Nigeria, to Athens’ Sepolia district in 1991. Francis, their eldest, lived with his grandparents in Lagos, while the other four Antetokounmpo sons were nurtured in Athens.

The two worked odd jobs and labor to make ends meet as unauthоrized immigrants. Giannis told TIME that Athens was “a daily strugglе,” and they “had to hustle every day to provide a plate of food on our table.”

Giannis and Thanasis sold street wares until 2012 to support their parents. Giannis told The New York Times that Charles and Veronica’s four boys slept on one bed and the couple in a tiny area behind “a curtain.”

“Those moments back then, they were beautiful, man,” Giannis told ESPN in 2018. “Overcoming the strugglе and seeing your family succeeding is unbelievable. I recall those days and am glad I went through them.”

According to The New York Times, junior club coach Spiros Velliniatis offered Charles and Veronica 800 euros-per-month employment to make 13-year-old Giannis join Filathlitikos, a semi-pro team. “I knew Nigerians don’t care about basketball,” Velliniatis remarked. Soccer interests them. You must bribe the parents. Otherwise, they won’t care.”

Veronica spoke to her children in her native language, Igbo

Giannis and his brothers maintained their Nigerian origins in Greece.“I grew up in a Nigerian home,” Giannis told Andscape. “Obviously, I was born and educated in Greece. I return home to no Greek culture. Pure Nigerian culture. It requires discipline, respect for elders, and values.Veronica spoke Igbo to her boys at home, one of four recognized Nigerian languages. Growing up, Charles spoke another of Nigeria’s 500+ languages and dialects.Giannis received a Nigerian passport in 2015. “It matters. My identity includes it. Both my parents are Nigerian. Get it, they said. I wаnted it, therefore I got it, he told the publication.The NBA player visited Nigeria with his parents in summer 2023.

They were both athletes

Charles was a professional soccer player and Veronica a high jumper.Charles utilized his soccer abilities to boost his sons’ basketball skills, notably footwork, but he hoped they would follow suit. Charles admired Giannis’ leadership of his brothers on and off the court.In 2016, Giannis’ father told the NBAPA, “The way that he mentors all of his brothers is amazing.” “He will do anything for them. He will stop at nothing to meet their needs. He teaches basketball, life, and priorities. I love seeing Giannis pass on what I teach him to them.”

Charles died in 2017

On Sept. 29, 2017, Giannis’ father died after a heart аttаck in Milwaukee. He was 54.Giannis, his family, and Veronica, whom he called “strong” and “a beast,” grieved on the basketball court at the Bucks’ downtown headquarters following Charles’ deаth.“There was never a day in my life that I called him in vain,” Giannis told NBA.com. “I might be lazy on the couch and ask him for food. He constantly said, ‘Yeah. Yeah, I’ll do anything for you.’ He has never missed a game since arriving. He was content. Very pleased. For all kids.”After his father’s deаth, Giannis claimed it was “okay to be sad” but that the family was grieving together.We adored dad. Mom adored her hubby. But I believe he accomplished what he was intended to do in this world,” he said. “He properly reared his five children. That matters most. When I Ԁie, I wish to leave my kids the influence my dad is leaving.”In 2019, Giannis captioned a throwback picture of him and his dad “Happy Father’s Day! I miss you ️.”Three years later, Giannis and his family launched the Charles Antetokounmpo Family Foundation, a “global social impact foundation” that supports the Milwaukee Diaper Mission and the International Rescue Committee to aid refugees, immigrants, kids, widows, and athletes.

Giannis honored both parents in his MVP Award speech

Giannis won the NBA MVP in 2019, two years after his father’s passing. He offered an impassioned message honoring his parents onstage.I thank my dad. “Obviously, my dad is not here,” he continued. “Two years ago, I wаnted to be the league’s best player. So I’ll do whatever to assist my team win and earn MVP. Every day on the court, I think about my dad, which encourages me to play harder and advance.”Giannis also honored his brothers and called his mother his “hero.”Little kids don’t see the future. Good parents envision the future for their children, he remarked. She constantly recognized our potential and believed in us. She constantly supported us. She underpins this family. You are my hero.”

They moved to Milwaukee in 2014

Giannis was picked by Milwaukee in 2013. Next year, his family joined him in Wisconsin after a lengthy, tough visa procedure.According to The New York Times, Mirin Fader writes in Giannis: The Improbable Rise of an NBA MVP that Giannis felt “lonely,” “homesick” and “lost” during his first season.In November 2013, he warned his family he would return to Greece if they couldn’t come to the U.S.I’m a strong child who can manage things on my own, yet I always lived with my family. But I felt I had to go for a brighter future, he told the NBPA. I regularly called my family on Skype to show them the flat, saying, ‘Alex, Kostas, here is your bedroom.’ I told Mom, “This is your and Dad’s bedroom.” Our living room. This is our kitchen. I noticed my mother’s eyes. She said, ‘Maybe one day we’ll be there with you.’ I was furious, but the Bucks brought my family.”Two years into his career, Giannis, Kostas, and Alex were housemates in Milwaukee before Kostas went to Dayton. Before Veronica moved upstairs following her husband’s deаth, their parents resided one story below in the downtown complex. According to GQ, Giannis, Riddlespringer, and their kids relocated to Milwaukee suburbs.

Their last nаme was not originally Antetokounmpo

They helped Giannis adjust to adulthood after he joined the NBA

and Veronica remained an arena regular following her husband’s deаth. While debuting in the league at 18, Giannis’ parents assisted by “paying the bills, driving me to the airport — simple things like that.””My dad helps me play basketball. His mother does everything else, he told the NBPA. I’d give my mom an MVP award.Veronica follows Giannis rumors, particularly on social media. Giannis told SiriusXM’s The Starting Lineup in 2022 that he avoided internet talk because his teammates, partner, and mother—who is “on Facebook all day”—would tell him.She knows everything. He quipped, “She’s my No. 1 fan, or stalker,” citing the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. She’s my mom.

They didn’t have friends in Greece due to feаr of deportation

As illegаl immigrants, Charles and Veronica were afraid to form friendships outside of their Greek family because “their friends could tell the cops, ‘Come get them,’” Giannis told TIME in 2017. “My parents still have trouble making friends in Milwaukee. Due to 25 years without pals. Trusting someone is hard.”In Greece, the youngsters feаred Charles and Veronica might be deported.I had no passport, so they couldn’t deport me. Deport me to where? Back to Nigeria?” Giannis told the publication. I was born in Greece with a birth certificate. My deportation failed. They may deport my parents. As children, we feаred waking up without our parents. That was one of our worst sensations as kids.”Even as an adult, his mother instructed him to ask questions and give her names to check up after meeting new individuals.He remarked, “So she still has that trust issue.” “I think it’s improving since we moved to the US. However, trusting individuals is now simple for me.”Charles and Veronica raised their children to be strong and optimistic despite their feаr of others.“Our parents always said, ‘Things will be all right. Believe in God, all will work out. We’re blessed. Giannis remembers being grateful simply to be here. “Be patient, believe, and patient.”

Veronica received Greek citizenship in 2021

Veronica and her youngest son Alex received Greek citizenship from President Katerina Sakellaropoulou in September 2021. Giannis and the president attended their inauguration on Sept. 16, 2021, at Prime Minister Kyriakos Mitsotakis’ home.“It is historic that you are the first woman president of the republic and thank you for inviting us as a family,” Giannis told Sakellaropoulou the following day, according to Kathimerini. “We have always felt Greek, went to a Greek school, know Greek, and know Greek culture; citizenship is just the endorsement.”They were the final two Antetokounmpos to become Greek citizens. Giannis and Thanasis received citizenship before the 2013 NBA draft. In 2016, Kostas got his.

Veronica has a custom basketball purse covered with autographs

While Giannis was the focus of the 2020 NBA All-Star Game in Chicago, Veronica was the center of attention off the court.As she displayed her personalized basketball handbag, WISN 12 News labeled her “the biggest fan of the night” in the sold-out audience. LeBron James, Khris Middleton, and her son Giannis signed the unique bag.Giannis lead the Eastern Conference, but her other four sons attended the game, which she termed “a very proud moment for me.”“It’s so fun, it’s so great, and I’m so proud,” she said of Giannis, who captained his second All-Star Game. “Better than proud.